<span class="SFPTagline"> From SCIFIPEDIA </span>

Gamera (aka Gammera) is a Japanese movie monster.

A giant fire-breathing turtle with retro-rockets? Yes, that's Gamera, created in answer to Godzilla, but more of a child-friendly character.

In the first film, there is a classic bit of Japanese giant monster science. After a plane crashing in the arctic releases nuclear energy, Gamera, a giant prehistoric turtle is thawed out and starts wreaking havoc. So, how do you defeat a turtle? You flip him on his back! This, of course, ignores the fact that this is a =bipedal= turtle. Still, it might have worked if Gamera hadn't been able to pull in his legs and have fire shoot out of them like a jet, causing him to spin around and fly off like a flying saucer!

Gamera's popularity has remained high. There have been more than ten movies made, and several of the Gamera films were shown (and mocked) on Mystery Science Theater 3000.

The Movies

The movies break down into specific series as the character was reimagined. The first seven films were produced by Daiei, and featured Gamera fighting a variety of enemies. The 8th film (Gamera: Super Monster) was produced under new management, and was more of a recap. The second series, following a successful revival of Godzilla as a character, brought a darker, more serious tone. Three films were directed by Shusuke Kaneko. In 2006, a twelfth Gamera film was released. This one was a re-boot, with a (literal) new generation of Gamera starring.